I feel sad for the entire humanity (especially for the Muslims) because the Maguindanao Massacre is out of political ambition and greed, and not, in any case, of religion. But for the simplest reason that the ‘massacre’ happened in Mindanao, a place known to be dominantly inhabited by Muslims and the fact that the main suspect is also a Muslim, it might be unavoidable/impossible for some people to stereotype, or as inappropriate as it is, become racist.

Having been exposed to Mindanao and to its selected indigent communities during my 2-year stint with a private NGO, I have met a lot of Muslims and have personally proven to myself that they are kind. So, it really breaks my heart when I hear people stereotype them or say negative things about them. Like they have no choice but to (somewhat) shoulder the faults of the few.

I remember the words of an elder Muslim I met in one of the Madrasah we visited. He said something like, “A person who inflicts violence or any kind of harm to his fellow is not a Muslim.”